LEGAZPI CITY – Officials of Sorsogon provincial government only intensifies brutality and fascism of state forces by abandoning its sworn duty to protect the people and their lack of action in the widespread extrajudicial killings mostly of elected village officials and other civilians according to National Democratic Front Bicol with dismay.

“They are just in the same hymn of AFP-PNP-CAFGU spokespersons flagging that the series of killings and harassment among civilians were New People’s Army (NPA)’s actions,” NDF Bicol spokesperson Ma. Roja Banua said referring to local officials in Sorsogon.

On August 29, resident Jerry Jenga of Sitio Uyango, Brgy. Aquino was shot dead at 12 noon. According to witnesses, suspects riding in motorcycles escaped after the shooting heading to the camp of the 509th Public Safety Company (PSC) based in Brgy. Aquino.

While at around 4 pm of the same day, Ronaldo Abion, resident of Sitio Calaay, Brgy. Tinampo in Irosin was also shot dead by suspects riding in motorcycles. Abion was long been accused as NPA supporter and repeatedly harassed by military.

Denying the allegations, NDF Bicol suspected the elements of 509th PSC and 31st Infantry Battalion of Philippine Army (IBPA). These two cases adds to the 104 cases of human rights violations of AFP-PNP-CAFGU forces in the region within half a year according to the regional democratic front.

In Sorsogon province alone, 10 cases of killings and 55 cases of harassment, intimidation and forced evacuation were reported perpetrated by state forces from the month of June to August 2017. AFP-CAFGU detachments are located in 12 out of 16 towns of Sorsogon while 37 villages are under the Peace and Development Teams (PDT) of state forces.

Infographics By NDF Bicol

According to NDF Bicol, the 31st IBPA showed extreme human rights violations endlessly targeting the civilians. “Such violence is just a few of the casualties of the intensified US-Duterte Offensives against the people’s determination to achieve true peace after the President’s SONA,” Banua added.

“The US-Duterte regime totally seized from the hands of the people the basic rights that ensure the safety of their lives and property,” she said explaining that the executive manipulates all the powers of legislative and judicial.

“It removes the mechanisms of ensuring the liability of anyone who abuse the power of all branches of government. Many lives are just considered to be part of statistics of the increasing violations of human rights,” Banua said.

Meanwhile, Celso Minguez Command (CMC) of NPA Sorsogon admitted they carried out death sentence against an active member of PNP-Bulan who was eager in its counter-insurgency operations.

NPA-CMC condemned SPO1 Nestor Austero of PNP-Bulan for its clear and direct involvement in the deployment of informants in some of the towns of Bulan.

“Although part of the police work is to operate as part of the counter-insurgency program of the reactionary government that involves the PNP, the revolutionary movement’s policy is still selective in punishing elements of the PNP. Only those policemen who have been proven at the trial of the people’s court that was directly involved on people’s human rights abuses and intelligence work against the revolutionary movement are punished,” NPA-CMC spokesperson Ka Samuel Guerrero said. (BaretangBikolnon.com)